{"version":"1.0","provider_name":"The News Journal","provider_url":"https:\/\/qa.thenewsjournal.net","title":"Don't wait to supplement &ndash; The News Journal","type":"rich","width":600,"height":338,"html":"<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"jjX2bimGQg\"><a href=\"https:\/\/qa.thenewsjournal.net\/dont-wait-supplement\/\">Don&#8217;t wait to supplement<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" src=\"https:\/\/qa.thenewsjournal.net\/dont-wait-supplement\/embed\/#?secret=jjX2bimGQg\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" title=\"&#8220;Don&#8217;t wait to supplement&#8221; &#8212; The News Journal\" data-secret=\"jjX2bimGQg\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\"><\/iframe><script type=\"text\/javascript\">\n\/* <![CDATA[ *\/\n\/*! This file is auto-generated *\/\n!function(d,l){\"use strict\";l.querySelector&&d.addEventListener&&\"undefined\"!=typeof URL&&(d.wp=d.wp||{},d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage||(d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage=function(e){var t=e.data;if((t||t.secret||t.message||t.value)&&!\/[^a-zA-Z0-9]\/.test(t.secret)){for(var s,r,n,a=l.querySelectorAll('iframe[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),o=l.querySelectorAll('blockquote[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),c=new RegExp(\"^https?:$\",\"i\"),i=0;i<o.length;i++)o[i].style.display=\"none\";for(i=0;i<a.length;i++)s=a[i],e.source===s.contentWindow&&(s.removeAttribute(\"style\"),\"height\"===t.message?(1e3<(r=parseInt(t.value,10))?r=1e3:~~r<200&&(r=200),s.height=r):\"link\"===t.message&&(r=new URL(s.getAttribute(\"src\")),n=new URL(t.value),c.test(n.protocol))&&n.host===r.host&&l.activeElement===s&&(d.top.location.href=t.value))}},d.addEventListener(\"message\",d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage,!1),l.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\",function(){for(var e,t,s=l.querySelectorAll(\"iframe.wp-embedded-content\"),r=0;r<s.length;r++)(t=(e=s[r]).getAttribute(\"data-secret\"))||(t=Math.random().toString(36).substring(2,12),e.src+=\"#?secret=\"+t,e.setAttribute(\"data-secret\",t)),e.contentWindow.postMessage({message:\"ready\",secret:t},\"*\")},!1)))}(window,document);\n\/* ]]> *\/\n<\/script>\n","thumbnail_url":"https:\/\/qa.thenewsjournal.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/GARRARD-COFFEY-CMYK-Horizontal.jpg","thumbnail_width":313,"thumbnail_height":282,"description":"The impacts of the fall drought conditions can be seen in some of our cow herds across the state.\u00a0 Cows are lower in body condition as a result of the grass shortage.\u00a0 Fall vegetative fescue grass will often be in the low 60\u2019s on TDN and mid-teens for crude protein, much higher in quality than our average hay.\u00a0 The lack of this fall forage growth will necessitate some early intervention. Many of the hay samples that I\u2019ve seen this year are lower in energy than normal due to the wet spring leading to over mature forage at harvest.\u00a0 Surprisingly, the protein levels have been decent in many of the hay samples.\u00a0 Knowing the energy and protein levels, one can develop a supplement program for your herd.\u00a0 Step 1 test your hay and find out the nutrient content.\u00a0 Your local Extension office can assist you with this process. Spring calving cows that have just been weaned will not have the higher plane of nutrition from fall grass this year.\u00a0 Cows will not recover body condition as quickly since lower quality hay is being fed early this winter.\u00a0 To increase the body condition score of a beef cow from a 4 to a 5, an additional 249 Mcal is needed.\u00a0 To achieve this in a 90-day window, the additional energy intake needed is approximately 2.8 additional Mcal\/day which is about a 20% increase in maintenance energy needs for that beef cow in mid-gestation. The maintenance energy needs for a cow is about 12.5 Mcal during mid-gestation.\u00a0 Average fescue hay will often just meet maintenance requirements.\u00a0 To increase the energy needed to gain condition as described above, one would need to supplement the cow.\u00a0 Corn may be the most cost effective energy source this winter. The recent Beef NRC lists corn at 2.17 Mcal\/kg meaning it would require 1.3 kg or 3 lbs of supplemental corn daily over a 90-day period to increase the body condition from 4 to 5.\u00a0 Delaying supplementation to late gestation may require higher supplementation levels.\u00a0 Nutritional needs increase in late gestation to support fetal development and often our forage alone will not meet the energy needs of cows during late gestation. As with all production systems, there will be differences in what one predicts on paper and what is realized in the field.\u00a0 Therefore, cattle managers need to routinely monitor the condition of the cows and make adjustments to the feeding program.\u00a0 Target body condition scores would be a 5 for cows and 6 for heifers at calving to ensure a greater probability of them cycling when the bulls are turned in. For more information, contact the Whitley County Extension office at 549-1430, visit the office at 4275 N. Highway 25W in Goldbug, or\u00a0 e-mail DL_CES_WHITLEY@EMAIL.UKY.EDU."}